SEATTLE-The COVID-19 pandemic has forced TV stations to re-assess and re-invent many elements of the production chain as well as the tools they use to deliver the news and forcing news anchors to set a good example by socially distancing and working from home. Teleprompters were among those important elements that did not go untouched.
Demand for more systems increased as soon as the pandemic broke in mid-March, according to Chris O'Brien, president of Telescript International. We got calls from some of the networks that were familiar with our equipment and they said we need to get stuff so we can anchor from all over. Can you get us as many systems as possible?'
CONTACT-FREE'After the initial scramble, O'Brien and his staff immediately noticed problems with remote anchoring. We saw the quality wasn't that good, he said. So we asked ourselves, how do we get this good for prompting? How do we get it good for production?
But it wasn't just the news stations that had issues. For corporate clients using prompters to communicate to their associates, the scripts may contain proprietary secrets, so a certain amount of security was needed, he added.
Using existing web technologies along with Telescript's hardware and software, we created this whole system we call Contact Free Recording with Prompting,' dubbed CFR, he said. Not only does CFR provide high quality prompting, it enables a high quality video and audio recording of the camera output so that later repackaging of the content can edit from the best quality source material.
Telescripts Fold & Go teleprompting system is ideal for remote operating and anchoring. (Image credit: Telescript)The CFR kit is designed for non-technical users, O'Brien added. All the talent has to do is connect to the internet. Once that happens, the prompter operator-or it could be a video technician, whoever it might be-can actually take full control and get that back to the station.
NETWORK PROMPTINGAccording to John Veenstra, president and chief engineer for Tekskil Industries, prompting solves only one part of the information puzzle inherent in remote anchoring. The loneliest people on TV are the guys in front of the camera, he said. Everybody on a show knows what's going on except them. So any help you can give them is huge.
In 2019, the Vancouver, B.C.-based company introduced the network-based Floor Manager that includes a prompter for a PTZ camera, talent monitor, three different digital clocks, three levels of tally, and camera ID. Finally there's ad hoc messaging, where text messages can be sent to the anchor.
Currently very little true network prompting, exists, Veenstra said. Some vendors will tell you they're doing network prompting, but what they're doing is sending the video down the CAT cable, he said. They're streaming the video down the CAT cable. That's not network prompting. Network prompting is when you send the data down the cable, and then you compose the video on the prompter monitor itself.
The kit was developed to support the talent on the other end, Veenstra said. We've integrated the platform with the PTZ cameras as well. We've got a product called the hub' that sits on a server or a laptop, or a desktop, whatever you want. And the application can control all of that stuff, including the Floor Manager.
NO VIDEO, JUST TEXT PLEASEVitec Production Solutions, parent company of long-time prompter providers Autoscript and Autocue, also received some panicked phone calls asking about remote prompting during the early days of the lockdown, according to Aaron Brady, technical sales manager.
We had engineers who needed to get prompters in the field that day, he said. Often they would look to have a solution later that week, but we were able to deliver it that same day. That was a shock to many an engineer.
Several years ago Autoscript updated its WinPlus-IP software to include an iPad interface license.
That allows us to prompt directly to an iPad, he said. We're not going to be streaming video, we're just sending text to the iPad, and the iPad generates its own video, he said. The specific advantage there is that we don't have to wait for all the bits to arrive and be assembled into an image.
Three versions of iPad mounting configurations are provided by Autocue and include the camera plate and the iPad mounting hardware itself, Brady said.
The most common deployment is one that allows you to read straight off the iPad, with the camera mounted just below the monitor, he said. The other two are through-the-glass configuration, with beam splitter glass, so the talent can be looking directly into the camera while they're reading the iPad. We have them for both small camera deployments, and for full-sized ENG camera deployments. Most people are going in with small camera deployments or PTZ cameras.
QUALITY, EVEN FROM A BASEMENTCuescript President Michael Accardi said he never thought he'd be selling teleprompters for use in anchors' basements, but that's been a big part of their business right now.
With social separation, you still need a prompter, he said. The funny part is you'd think they're going to put a cheap prompter in the house. Well, just because you're in somebody's house it doesn't mean the anchor's eyes are going to get any better. In some cases you can go smaller because the distances are shorter, but you still need a decent quality unit that has the brightness, the contrast and scrolling smoothness to it.
In hindsight, Cuescript's introduction of its CueTALK network prompting system at the 2019 IBC Show proved timely, providing seamless operation through standard CAT5/6 IT infrastructure.
A lot of people didn't know that they already h
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
25/04/2024
Sundance Institute Founder Robert Redford during a press conference at the 1996 ...
25/04/2024
alt= class=wp-image-12361 data-lazy-src=/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NAB-booth-2024-960x540-1.jpg/> Set against a vibrant backdrop of innovation and collaboratio...
25/04/2024
alt= class=wp-image-12356 data-lazy-src=/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NAB-mod-win-960x540-1.jpg/>NAB's Eric Trabb (right) awards SNS with two NAB Show Product...
25/04/2024
PHILADELPHIA Comcast beat earnings estimates in its Q1 2024 financial report, as streaming losses continued to decline and Peacock's paid subscribers spiked...
25/04/2024
SEATTLE The Seattle Kraken have inked new multi-year agreements with Tegna and Prime Video that will expand access to their games over broadcast stations and st...
25/04/2024
M2A Medias Matt Hughes asks, is it time for news broadcasting to shift to the cloud?
By Contributor
Published: April 25, 2024
M2A Media's Matt Hughes ...
25/04/2024
Cintel Scanner G3 HDR Restores Egypt's Cinema Treasures to Their Former Glo...
25/04/2024
Sinclair Broadcast Group said it named Kevin Coskren chief meteorologist at KTUL, its ABC affiliate in Tulsa, Oklahoma....
25/04/2024
The Business of TV News, a new one-day event featuring Martha Raddatz, Shannon Bream, Glenn Kirschner and other major figures in television news, happens at Hot...
25/04/2024
Conditions put on the proposed sale of WADL Detroit, to Mission Broadcasting have created a potential drama in the Motor City....
25/04/2024
TelevisaUnivision reported a $52 million loss in the first quarter, up from $3 m...
25/04/2024
Comcast reported flat first-quarter earnings as it reduced the red ink at Peacock but continued to lose video and broadband customers....
25/04/2024
Music-video network Vevo said it launched its app on Telly, the company offering consumers free dual-screen TVs in return for data about what they're watchi...
25/04/2024
Future Today said it has introduced a redesigned user interface for about half of its 300 streaming apps, including Fawesome, HappyKids and iFood.TV....
25/04/2024
The writer and director of a hit Czech series tell Robert Shepherd about their approach to portraying real-life Pakistani kidnappings on the small screen, while...
25/04/2024
Notorious DIT will work with the Liverpool Film Office to increase opportunities for regional talent
By Matthew Corrigan
Published: April 25, 2024
Notorio...
25/04/2024
Broadpeak , a leading provider of content delivery network (CDN) and video streaming solutions for content providers and pay-TV operators worldwide, announced t...
25/04/2024
Lightware Visual Engineering, a leading manufacturer of connectivity solutions for the professional integrated systems market and a pioneer in signal management...
25/04/2024
Net Insight has entered into a collaboration with DMC Production that positions Net Insight at the forefront of sports broadcasting in the Nordics. Net Insight ...
25/04/2024
GlobalM has announced a strategic partnership with scoopa, the specialists in broadcast-quality content distribution, offering a complementary service for live ...
25/04/2024
PlayBox Neo announces the completion of a new multichannel playout system for the DDish direct-to-home satellite television network in Mongolia. Based in the na...
25/04/2024
Canadian music producer and engineer Garth Richardson also known as Gggarth due to his stutter - has embraced immersive audio by installing a PMC monitoring s...
25/04/2024
Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Televisa, the Mexican telecommunications and broadcasting company, has chosen Synamedia as its pa...
25/04/2024
OTTera, a leading provider of end-to-end OTT and FAST channel solutions, proudly announces its strategic partnership with ThinkAnalytics, a global leader in adv...
25/04/2024
The American Tobacco Campus will be hopping with activity tonight and this weekend with two fun events!
Durham Night Market
At last! The Durham Night Market i...
25/04/2024
WEST CHESTER, Pa. Video commerce provider Qurate Retail Group has launched The Big Dish, a new culinary-themed FAST channel on The Roku Channel....
25/04/2024
LOS ANGELES The Hollywood Professional Association has announced that submissions for the 2024 HPA Engineering Excellence Awards are now being accepted. This re...
25/04/2024
NEW YORK The digital media measurement and analytics firm DoubleVerify has announced that it has received Media Rating Council (MRC) accreditation for Video Vie...
25/04/2024
SAN FRANCISCO Fox Corp.'s ad-supported streaming service Tubi has announced a licensing agreement with the sports platform DAZN that will see DAZN Ringside ...
25/04/2024
NEW YORK In the runup to the 2024 IAB NewFronts, the IAB has announced three key appointments to its leadership team....
25/04/2024
Epic Games releases Unreal Engine 5.4 with new Motion Design Mode, Unreal VCam f...
25/04/2024
Content Creation, Production, Distribution Is In a State of Flux
Andy Marken April 24, 2024
0 Comments
My empathy is creeping towards what I would de...
25/04/2024
The Carolina Panthers and Capitol Broadcasting Company (CBC) announced they have...
25/04/2024
Berklee Student Riko Sasaski Named 2024 Yamaha Young Performing Artist The accomplished saxophonist secured a spot among the elite winners of this year's ...
25/04/2024
Stations everywhere take pride in having a main anchor who comes from the market they represent. That applies in St. Louis, too, but it also pertains to general...
25/04/2024
Edward Moody is joining the WBTW Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, anchor crew, and will anchor the 5, 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts alongside Trish Williford. He comes f...
25/04/2024
MTV said the 2024 Video Music Awards will return to New York and take place at the new UBS Arena....
25/04/2024
Season three of comedy The Outlaws premieres on Prime Video May 31. Stephen Merchant co-created the show, and stars. There are five episodes....
25/04/2024
The E.W. Scripps Co. is evaluating offers for Bounce, its multicast channel for African-American viewers, according to a report from CNBC....
25/04/2024
Paramount Plus has ordered a second season for Dora, the animated preschool show based on Dora the Explorer. The show, featuring Dora on a rainforest adventure ...
25/04/2024
Bayanat AI PLC (ADX: BAYANAT), a leading AI-powered geospatial solutions provider, and Al Yah Satellite Communications Company P.J.S.C. (ADX: YAHSAT), the UAE&#...
25/04/2024
April 25th, 2024 Press Materials Available Here
TRIBECA FESTIVAL 2024 ANNOUNCES AUDIO STORYTELLING AND GAMES LINEUP
Audio Storytelling Program Features 10th ...
25/04/2024
NFL Draft 2024: Verizon Expands Broadband Capacity To Handle the Spike in Demand Mobile cells will help accommodate first responders, social media, sports betti...
25/04/2024
NFL Draft 2024: NFL Media Teams With The Fantasy Footballers on Hybrid, REMI Pro...
25/04/2024
NFL Draft 2024: ESPN Motors Into Detroit With Trio of Simultaneous Live Presenta...
25/04/2024
Published On: April 25th, 2024
data-orig-src=https://www.sgo.es/wp-content/upl...
SEATTLE-The COVID-19 pandemic has forced TV stations to re-assess and re-invent many elements of the production chain as well as the tools they use to deliver the news and forcing news anchors to set a good example by socially distancing and working from home. Teleprompters were among those important elements that did not go untouched.
